Bit Of A Smoking Problem

[lemmiwinks]

I just recently got a 22" three hose egyptian hookah from social smoke, and I'm having a kind of peculiar problem with it. At first when I smoked it the smoke was pretty light, but after a few adjustments such as more water and shisha I got it to smoke pretty heavily. However, after a few bowls with heavy smoke I stopped getting the really thick smoke... I was using the same kinds of shisha and the same if not more amount of shisha. I clean my hookah out every time after I use it, fill the base with cold water 1-1.5" above the tip of the stem, everything I've read that I'm supposed to do. What could be the problem? Is there such a thing as too many holes in the foil? Also I have (had) a large clay bowl and use two of the charcoals that come with SS hookahs, I believe it's 3 kings 33 mm.

On a side note, my hookah bowl broke (twice actually), I was wondering if there was a certain place you guys would recommend I get a replacement from or a certain type of bowl that is good. I was thinking of getting a metal bowl to avoid further heartbreak, but I'm sure it would look obscene with the egyptian look of the hookah... Also, I'm probably going to be buying some shisha at the same time so as not to waste S&H charges, so a place that I can also buy shisha at would be good.

Thanks for the help, I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing wrong.

[ZenSilk]

Get a Phunnel bowl! From mnhookahs.com or hookahcompany.com, or jandrhookahs.com, or nazarhookahs.com...

And i think your problem may be Heat Management. When shisha burns, it stops smoking perfectly. Your smoke should look like cummulus clouds that you see in the sky, fluffy, white, and the taste should be dead on what it is supposed to be. You should move the coals around every so often, roatate them to a new place, maybe every 20 minutes?

Theres a ton of stuff that factors into poor smoke quality.

[lemmiwinks]

Those are damn interesting bowls! How do they work, do you just fill up the entire thing and there are small holes in the bottom or something? And will one fo those definitely fit onto my hookah? I would agree with the heat management problem, it seems I've been moving the coals around much too often (I moved them about every five to ten minutes), but I did the same thing when I was getting thicker smoke as well so maybe I have another problem as well... Do hookahs have like a breaking in period or something? In any case, I'll try that out and see how it goes, thanks. As soon as I can get a new bowl, that is...

[MechAnt]

There is a such thing as too many holes. It allows too much air to mix in with the shisha and it thins out. Poke your holes in a # pattern. I saw this when I started smoking and I've never used anything else.

[ZenSilk]

Did the weather just recently change where you live? that could affect smoke quality. The coals have to sit in place for a little so they can heat the bowl and the shisha in that area, producing smoke. If you move them too often there wont be a chance for the shisha to be cooked and therefore you will have no smoke.

You may need to work on your foil hole placement/pattern?

[lemmiwinks]

If the holes are a factor too then I think that's probably my problem, I just take a push pin and make a hell of a lot of holes in the top. MechAnt what do youe mean by a # pattern, as in make the holes look like there's a tic tac toe board in the foil? And is there a certain amount of holes that I should put in the top, or just space them evenly at like .5-1 centimeter apart?

[MechAnt]

Here's a pic for reference. Space them out accordingly so the pattern fits over the whole of the foil

[attachment=630:hole_pattern.jpg]

[ghostofdavid]

Do NOT get a metal bowl, you will burn your shisha much faster than you will be able to enjoy it. If your bowl is broken, you probably aren't getting a nice air tight seal to smoke with and that is why you are getting thin smoke. If you have pictures, feel free to post them and we might be able to spot something with our peepers.

[lemmiwinks]

OK, I see. My bowl is actually completely shattered now, I'm afraid I don't have any way to get pictures onto my cpu, thanks though. I think I'm going to get one of those phunnel bowls, they look kind of crazy but I have absolutely no idea what they actually do, is there like an inverted funnel or something and you fill the shisha in on the sides? How would the smoke get through then, is there a screen or some small holes or something somewhere? Thanks for all the help.

[chrisrbts]

if you get a phunnel bowl and you don't smoke tangiers tobacco you should also buy a scallis mod or glass phunnel mod from either mnhookah or hookahcompany (i don't know if there are more places that sell them, but i bought mine from mn) this device sits over the phunnel howl and has 3 air shoots that direct the air through the tobacco and down into the bowl hole.

I know there is a thread somewhere on how to pack the phunnel bowl, so i will try and look for it.